“I only attended a few years. I met my ex-husband in his senior year, and I quit college and got married.”
“Sounds like a typical story,” Bobbie Sue said. “I’m glad women these days aren’t so dead set on getting married so young.”
“And they certainly know their future husbands much longer than we did,” I said. “But it worked out fine. My parents would have disowned me if I lived in sin with your father, Martha.”
“Thanks for the trip down memory lane, but we need to get going,” Martha said. “We still have jewelry to make.”
Eleanor sank into the recliner and powered the chair backward after Martha left with the twins. She closed her eyes and said, “I’m bushed.”
“Me too,” I said.
I answered the door when I heard a thump and a meow. I held the door open for Duchess, my cat. “Where have you been, young lady?”
Duchess jumped on Eleanor’s lap. “I thought she was an indoor cat.”
“Tell her that. Ever since she had kittens, I can’t keep her inside.”
“Did you get her fixed?”
“Not yet.”
“Uh-oh.”
“Don’t jinx me.”
“Well, you know how cats can be.”
“Andrew told me to get her fixed, but I never took the time.”
“It looks like Bernice will have more cats.”
“I’ll have you know I found homes for all the kittens. Bernice has enough feline love to last her a lifetime.”
“Do you really believe Bernice stayed in the car at Constance’s house as she said?”
“I believe it. I don’t know if I would have knocked on the door if no cars were in the driveway.”
“But she has a pole barn big enough for cars.”
“You’re right, and she had a van parked in there,” I said. “I wonder if that was the vehicle Constance drove.”
“Beats me.”
“I wonder if Sheriff Peterson checked that out yet.”
“Please don’t tell me we plan on speaking to Peterson today.” Eleanor sighed.
“We’ll wait until tomorrow morning.”
“After we snoop around at the hospital or before?”
“After will have to do since I’m planning on questioning Peterson about the man we found.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea. If we ask about the man, he’ll tell us to stay away from him. You must have another idea about how we’ll find the man.”
I frowned as I thought for a moment and then said, “We expected a cop will guard the man’s room, so we should walk up and down the halls until we find one parked outside a room.”
“Unless there’s more than one room guarded by a deputy.”
Eleanor and I knocked on the coroner's door at the hospital, and Walter Smitty yelled to come in from his side of the door.
I poked my head in the door. “I hope we’re not bothering you,” I said.
Smitty rolled his eyes. “Like that’s ever mattered.”
Eleanor and I sat in chairs opposite the coroner. “That’s not true. We didn’t come to the hospital to see you.”
“But we didn’t want to be rude and not say hello at least,” Eleanor added.
Smitty didn’t look up from the open folder on his desk.
“I did the autopsy of the body Peterson brought in yesterday.” Smitty swept a hand over his thinning hair. “Pretty open-and-shut case. Died from a gunshot wound.”
“We thought as much,” Eleanor said.
“I wonder if Peterson is planning to release the name of the victim today.”
“The body hasn’t been identified yet,” Smitty said.
“We already know who the woman is. Constance Shaklee.”
“Just because you found the body on Constance’s property doesn’t mean it’s Constance.”
“I wonder how the other victim is doing.”
“What other victim?” Smitty asked.
“We found an unconscious man in the pole barn at the scene. He had a bump on his head but otherwise seemed unharmed.”
“It might be more serious if he‘s still unconscious especially with a head wound.”
“We’re trying to piece it together, but it’s hard when we don’t know the man’s name.”
“Well, I can’t help you with that. Did you ask the sheriff about it?”
“No, we came here first.”
“Good luck finding him if you don’t even know his name.”
“We’ll just have to go up and down the halls until we find him.”
Smitty’s brow shot up. “And you don’t think security will stop you?”
“I don’t see why,” I said as I checked my watch. “Visiting hours have just begun.”
“What makes you think the man regained consciousness?”
“That’s what we’re here for, to find out.”
“He might have a skull fracture for all you know. You won’t be helping the man if you try asking him questions this soon.”
Eleanor squeezed my hand. “He’s right, Agnes.”
“I know that, but I was just hoping.”
“Speak to the sheriff about the man. He’ll be more willing to share information with you if he knows you haven’t undermined him by coming to the hospital and attempting to interrogate the patient.”
“You've ruined our plans for the day.” I sighed.
“Better your plans than that man’s life if he’s critical.”
“If he was critical, we wouldn’t be able to see him.”
“You’re precisely right.”
Eleanor and I dragged ourselves back to the car, and I drove to the sheriffs department. Walter made perfect sense, but that didn’t mean I had to like it. I had to admit I felt bad about going to the hospital intending to speak to the man. It was wrong on so many levels. The man might be fighting for his life right now.
I led the way into the sheriffs department and asked if the sheriff was in. The receptionist buzzed us back, and we walked into Peterson’s office.
“Close the door, Agnes,” Peterson said.
I shut the door, and we sat across from the sheriff. He logged off the computer application he was working on and gave us his full attention.
I noted the coffee cup with a tea bag sitting on a nearby saucer. Peterson’s desk was free of snacks. I wish I could stay on a diet like the sheriff.
“We just came from the hospital,” I said.
Peterson’s eyes narrowed. “You went to see Misha Curry?” Peterson exploded.
“N-No,” I stuttered. “I mean no. We visited with Walter Smitty, and he suggested that we leave the man alone. We don’t want to be responsible if the man’s condition declines.”
“Isn’t it a little soon in the case to pay a visit with Smitty? I doubt the autopsy is even done yet.”
“Oh, it’s done. It appears the woman died from a shotgun wound like we’d thought,” I said. “I didn’t even ask Smitty about the autopsy. I swear.”
Peterson sighed heavy enough that I felt it on my side of the desk. I suppressed the eww.
“Please continue.”
“He mentioned the body hasn’t been identified yet,” Eleanor said.
“We weren’t sure if Smitty was right or not,” I said.
“Why would he say it if it wasn’t true,” Peterson countered.
“Because we all know the victim is Constance Shaklee,” I spat.
“No you don’t and neither do I yet. I’m still looking for Constance’s relatives for an identification.”
“She has a daughter by the name of Becky, and Brad is her son’s name. We didn’t have time to follow up with them yet.”
Peterson jotted down the information. “How did you learn this?”
“We were looking for animals for the egg hunt and spoke to farmers in the area. One of them mentioned Constance’s name since we were still looking for rabbits for the event.”
“Farmer’s name?”
“I don’t remember
, we spoke to more than one farmer.”
Peterson shot me a look as he tapped his pen on the desk. “Name please.”
I stared at Peterson. I wasn’t willing to give him Harvey’s name. I didn’t want to make him regret speaking to us.
“Tell him, Agnes,” Eleanor said.
I sighed. “He doesn’t even know Constance personally.”
“He must know her some kind of way if he knows the names of her children.”
“I imagine they must have run into one another at the fair.”
“I thought we were at the point in our relationship where we shared information,” Peterson said. “I’d hate to change that.”
“Will you tell us when the man regains consciousness?”
“I can do that, but you’re not allowed to speak with him unless I give you permission.”
“Harvey Farmer gave us the names of Constance’s children,” I said. “He told us he didn’t personally know Constance.”
“That’s helpful,” Peterson said.
“How did you learn the name of the man at the hospital?” I asked.
“His identification was in his wallet.”
“I don’t recognize his name, but that doesn’t mean a lot.”
“I wonder who he is to Constance,” Eleanor said.
Peterson massaged his temples. “Can we please not call the victim Constance until we’re certain that’s who it is, or did you tell everyone in Tawas already?”
“Actually, we haven’t told anyone about the body we found,” Eleanor said. “We didn’t want to harm your investigation.”
“That’s a first.”
Peterson turned to his computer and tapped on the keys until he swiveled back to us. “Gary and Becky live in Oscoda, so we should be able to clear this up if Constance is the victim.”
“Did you find any shotgun shells on the property?” I asked.
Peterson shook his head. “I believe the killer must have collected the shell casings.”
“Can we go back to the scene of the crime and look around ourselves?” I asked.
“Knock yourselves out. Give me a ring if you find the shotgun shells, but I wouldn’t count on finding any. The grass in the field is high.”
“When Eleanor and I speak to Constance’s children, we need to talk to them about finding her rabbits.”
“The rabbits you were looking for?”
“Someone let them out of the pole barn,” I said.
“We saw one of the little buggers digging a burrow under the woodpile,” Eleanor said.
“I’m sure the rabbits will be fine.”
“I’m sure they won’t be fine. They’ll never survive on their own.”
“That’s not my concern, but you can discuss that with whoever shows up at the property.”
“Still going with the victim isn’t Constance?”
“It’s never good to assume anything. Constance could be out of town, and those two victims we found could have been looking after the property for her.”
“Or broke into the pole barn,” Eleanor added.
6
Eleanor and I left feeling no better than when we had arrived. Learning the name of the unconscious man was of little use since we wouldn’t be able to talk to him right now.
“When have I heard the last name of Curry recently?” Eleanor asked once we were back in the car.
“Curry chicken?” I asked with a smile. “It’s much too spicy for you.”
“No, I meant like the last name. Bonnie Sue Curry for instance.”
My mouth fell open. “Thank you, Eleanor. We better hurry up before the twins leave town.”
I headed in the campground's direction.
“How can you be sure the twins are still there or if Martha is home?”
“I’m assuming they might still be at the campground assisting Martha with her jewelry.”
“Good point. Do you think Misha is Bonnie Sue’s husband?”
“Or ex-husband?”
“So that means Bonnie Sue could have caught Constance with her husband Misha.”
“And blasted her.”
“She wouldn’t be able to harm her husband so easily.”
“Since she didn’t kill him too, she must still have feelings for him.”
Martha and the twins were sitting at the picnic table laughing when we arrived. Eleanor and I met the trio with a smile.
“I’m so glad you’re still here Bobbie Sue and Bonnie Sue,” I said.
“Your mother must have had quite the time telling the two of you apart,” Eleanor said. “You both look too much alike to me to know who is who.”
“My eyebrows are more arched than my sisters,” one twin said.
“Which one are you again?”
“Bobbie Sue,” she said.
“That’s great, thanks for helping me out with that. Are you ladies married?” I asked.
“Nope,” Bobbie Sue said. “But Bonnie Sue used to be married.”
Bonnie Sue rolled her eyes. “Don’t remind me.”
“Do tell?” Eleanor asked. “I love a good man-bashing story.”
“I’m not bashing him.”
“Even if he’s a snake in the grass,” Bobbie Sue said. “He’s—”
“Would you stop it?” Bonnie Sue gasped. “I’m the only one who should be talking ill of him.”
“So let me get this straight,” Eleanor began. “Misha Curry is your husband?”
“Ex-husband she means,” I said.
“Yes, and I’ll admit he broke my heart.” Bonnie Sue sighed.
“Does he live in Tawas?” I asked.
“Mother, what is this about?” Martha asked as she slapped the necklace she was working on to the table.
“I’m getting to that,” I said.
“I hate to share information that might be painful, but I believe Misha is in the hospital. We found him unconscious in a pole barn yesterday.”
Bonnie Sue’s mouth gaped open. “Why didn’t you tell me that yesterday?”
“I didn’t learn his name until this morning. It’s kind of complicated; the police might guard his room until he wakes up. I’m uncertain of his condition.”
“You’re not telling us everything,” Martha said. “Spill it.”
“I can’t or the sheriff will be angry.”
“Since when do you care if the sheriff gets angry or not?”
“Sorry, but we can’t afford to be out of the loop.”
Eleanor cleared her throat. “It will be hard to question Bonnie Sue if she doesn’t know the entire story.”
“I think we can question her without telling her everything.”
“Do they usually have a conversation about someone and act like the person isn’t sitting there?” Bobbie Sue asked.
“All the time,” Martha said.
I turned my attention to Bonnie Sue. “Did Misha cheat on you when he was married to you?”
Bonnie Sue’s lower lip trembled. “Why are you asking me that?”
“We’ll take that as a yes,” Eleanor said. “Would you consider yourself the jealous type?”
“I suppose I was jealous when I found out, but heartsick is more the word. I can’t believe Misha did that to me. He’s always worked so hard on our marriage. He worked long hours so I wouldn’t feel so stressed out since I could only find low-paying jobs.”
“Do you think my sister had something to do with Misha’s condition when he was found?” Bobbie Sue asked.
“I hate to ask you, Bonnie Sue, but have you ever harmed Misha physically?” I asked with a grimace.
“No,” she sniffled. “Now the woman he was involved with is another matter.”
“That doesn’t sound good,” Eleanor said. “Are you saying you went after the woman your husband carried on with?”
“I did once but only because they were flaunting it in my face.”
“How so?”
Bobbie Sue stepped between her sister and me. “I can’t allow you to speak to my siste
r like that.”
“I’m just trying to sort this out. I have to find the answers to my questions, and believe me I don’t like to do this. But I have to find the person who sent Misha to the hospital.”
“It wasn’t my sister,” Bobbie Sue said. “She would never harm a hair on his head. Believe it.”
Bonnie Sue turned her sister to face her. “I don’t need your help. I can handle this.”
Bobbie Sue sat down with a frown.
“My mother doesn’t have a choice,” Martha said. “Once she has her answers, she’ll leave you alone.”
“My daughter is right,” I said. “We have a few more questions, and we’ll move on.”
My phone rang, and I walked to the car to take the call. I nodded as I listened to the person on the other end of the phone, then rejoined the women after I ended the call.
“It will be much easier to question you now,” I said. “You mentioned going after a woman Misha was seeing?”
Bonnie Sue fidgeted in her seat. “Yes. I caught Misha with another woman at Robinson’s Manor, and I waited until Misha used the bathroom before I confronted her.”
“I’m shocked I haven’t heard this story,” Eleanor said. “I hope it wasn’t anyone I know.”
“We‘re not aware of anyone who gets involved with married men—or not since you were single, Eleanor,” I said with a smile. I thought it warranted humor to lighten up the mood somewhat.
“Jillian Bauer was Misha’s yoga instructor,” Bonnie Sue spat out.
“That makes sense,” Eleanor said with a shrug.
“Please continue.”
“I slapped her across the face and told her to stay away from my husband.”
“Well, did she stay away from your husband?”
“I don’t know because Bobbie Sue insisted I file for divorce. It’s the only thing I could do to save face after what happened at the manor.”
“It doesn’t sound like it was the first time he’d done that, so it was probably a good move.”
“That’s what I told her,” Bobbie Sue said.
“So why go after the woman in the situation and not your husband is what I don’t understand,” Eleanor said. “Misha is the one who vowed to stay faithful. He’s the one who promised till death do you part.”
“I can agree with that,” I said. “Some men don’t even tell the other woman they’re married.”
Easter Eggs and Shotgun Shells Page 5
